


Human

by TheGreenMeerkat



Category: Invader Zim
Genre: Angst, Clone Dib (Invader Zim), Dib Trying His Best, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Fluff and Hurt/Comfort, Insecure Zim, M/M, Not made clear but Dib was a clone in this, they both are
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-26
Updated: 2020-02-26
Packaged: 2021-02-28 00:32:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,052
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22904761
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheGreenMeerkat/pseuds/TheGreenMeerkat
Summary: Dib recalls a time of growth.(Aka, Zim won't take off his human costume.)
Relationships: Dib/Zim (Invader Zim)
Comments: 7
Kudos: 103





	Human

**Author's Note:**

> I've had half of this done for months now, SO glad to finally finish it.
> 
> Hope you enjoy!

Dib and Zim's relationship did not develop easily.

It was… difficult, to say the least. After Zim finally accepted that he could never win back the Tallests' respect, their friendship came almost naturally. When they already knew everything about each other, when they already spend the majority of their time together, how could it not? But to transfer that to something more was, at some times, painful.

But it was also  _ beautiful. _ Gentle brushes of the hands, deep blushes and smiles when they think the other isn't looking - from all of their wreckage and mistakes, a flower of the purest kind of love formed. Dib and Zim could both agree the pain it took to get there was worth even a second of finally,  _ finally _ holding each other close.

They were beautiful messes, but sometimes it got ugly. Sharp words, sharp claws, everything about them was unavoidably sharp. It doesn't matter how much you love someone; a little bit of habit mixed with thousands of moments of trauma can make even the strongest lose control.

They had to learn empathy together. They had to realize that being good people - or at least, not bad people - was worth it. Zim had to grow up, shape his own morals instead of doing whatever the Tallests told him to and accept love into his life. Dib had to accept that he was never the "good guy" in their story, no matter how just his cause was at any time. He had to learn forgiveness, through friends, family, and himself.

They have, mostly. These things take a lifetime of work, but Dib and Zim have managed to heal many of the wounds that plagued them. In a metaphorical sense, they were finally both human.

They realized it on the same day. Zim had been staying at Dib's house for a few days, much to Gaz's dismay (Dib knew she secretly liked having Zim over, too. Video games couldn't entertain her forever). They would stay at each other's houses on and off like this mainly for Zim, who struggled to not fall into depressive episodes when alone.

Every morning, no matter what house they were staying at, it was the same routine. Dib would wake up to find Zim already putting on his contacts and wig minutes before the alarm went off, then they would get ready and walk to school together hand in hand. Something always irked him about that, but for a while he got so used to the routine that he forgot to question it. He wasn't reminded until the night Zim crawled into bed with his human disguise still on.

"Forgetting something, bud?" Yes, 'bud' was a strange thing to call the alien you've been dating for more than a year, but it just fit nicely for Zim, and he didn't seem to care what nicknames Dib called him.

"Eh?" The irken peered around himself and the room with suspicion, trying to spot whatever Dib might be talking about. "Zim forgets nothing, my memory is perfect!"

Dib let out a snort and rolls his eyes. "Your disguise, dingus. Do you want your eyes to burn?"

The alien rubbed at his eyes in response and plopped down on the bed, making no movement to take off his wig or contacts. "Irken eyes aren't  _ weak _ like human's. I can wear these contacts for ages!"

"Well at least take off the wig. I know your antenna get smushed under there." Just to make sure Zim wouldn't protest, Dib grabbed the wig himself and threw it lazily on his bedroom floor. Zim would remember to pick it up in the morning, so it didn't matter where it ended up.

"G'night Zim."

"...night."

He really should have realized something was wrong then and there, but Dib's not well known for picking up on emotions - plus, he really wanted to sleep. (He wouldn't get much rest that night, as time would tell, but present Dib can't complain.)

Unfortunately, the sound of shuffling wakes him up long before the sun is out, a quick check on his phone showing it being just past 3 Am. He locates the cause of the sound immediately; waking up to a missing Zim is always a sign of trouble. Thankfully, he is found right at the edge of the bed, aggressively rubbing at his eyes.

"I told you." Zim jumps at the sound of Dib behind him, antenna perked up with alarm. "Even with your 'superior irken eyes,' you shouldn't go to bed with contacts on."

"Zim's eyes are fine." His voice peaks high at the end of his sentence. Not only is he lying, but he's nervous about it. "Just go back to sleep, silly Dib."

"Bullshit." He moved away from his spot on the bed to sit next to Zim on the floor. "Why are you being stubborn? Is there something you're hiding from me? Are you hurt?" He couldn't think of any reason the alien would hide an injury from him unless it was serious. Life threatening serious.

However, Zim was quick to shake his head. "Not hurt. Stop worrying, Dib-love. Really, it's not a big deal." With Dib simply glaring at him in response, Zim grimaced and gave in. "I thought you would prefer it, is all."

"Prefer what, your eyes getting burned? I don't get-"

"Prefer a human Zim.”

Oh.

"...Zim, you…" he sighs, exasperated by the situation at hand. After all this time, how could he really think…? It was much too late for this. He was already bad at emotions in the day, how could he ever comfort someone at three in the morning?

But this was Zim, the alien he knew better than himself. He knew what to do. "Take off your contacts, let's go to the roof."

Zim followed Dib's orders without protest, letting his real ruby red eyes show and crawling out of the window with the human in front. They went on the roof quite often, usually when one of them was upset and needed a distraction. Dib would point at different stars and see if Zim could identify them, and Zim would tell any space stories he could think of - not only did Dib just enjoy any alien-themed stories, but he also finds his space bug’s passionate rambles utterly adorable.

As much as he would love to do that now, this was not a situation that could be solved with distractions. “What makes you think I want a ‘human Zim,’ then?”

The Irken was staring off into the sky as he usually does, but that made him look at Dib with bewilderment. “Because you're a human? Who should be courting another human? That's pretty obvious.”

“And yet I'm dating you.” He tapped against the roof in thought. He may not have a good grapple on this healthy relationship thing yet, but he  _ does _ have an understanding of his alien, and the last thing he has ever been is insecure about his looks. No, this was a much deeper issue, but he needed Zim to cooperate first. “Do you want an Irken-looking Dib?”

Zim looked down in thought, his face then turning into a wide-eyed panic. "No.  _ Tallests  _ no. You'd be even more annoying as an Irken." He earned a light smack on the head for that, making him chuckle. "Though antennae might look good on you."

"Do you  _ want _ to keep getting smacked?" He tried to sound threatening, but he was resisting a smile. He got a laugh out of him, that was progress. “So if you don't want me to be an Irken, why would you think I want you as a human?”

“Because, eh… You're human, and…” He was struggling to come up with something that made sense. He wasn't treating this as sharing his feelings, but instead trying to prove his point. “Well, I’m  _ used _ to humans now, of course! And you are too! You don't see Irkens often, it only makes sense you’d want a human. Do you see other humans wanting to attract another species?”

Yes, Dib thought, but he wasn't about to explain furries and monster-fuckers to Zim. “That's a bullshit argument and you know it. Tell me the truth, Zim.”

The alien looked as if he was about to deject once again, but instead, he pulled his knees up to his chest in insecurity. “Irkens… I  _ hate _ them. I hate what they did to me. I hate what they did to others, to their own kind. They're all  _ so-” _ He let out a growl with clenched fists, then took a deep breath. It wasn't the worst of his problems, but he was trying to work on his temperament.

“It's not that I- Zim has no problem with being an Irken, physically.” He rubbed at his forehead with his three-fingered hand, nearly scratching at his face. Seeing his frustration, Dib offered up his own hand to hold, which Zim took gratefully. “I worry that I can't escape my history. That- that it's  _ ingrained _ in us. Even if it's not instinctual, we're trained for  _ years. _ Intelligent species, they require proper care in childhood to be fully-functioning adults. Irkens don't get that - no one even knows when an Irken actually reaches adulthood because that was  _ erased. _

“Dib, what if…” Dib looked at the alien with a bit of shock. Rarely ever did Zim just use his name, nor talk so openly about the wrongdoings of his kind. “What if I  _ can't  _ be human?”

“You're worried you can't ever feel like us.” Zim didn't respond, but he didn't have to. It wasn't a question.

It always amazed Dib how intelligent and stupid Zim could be at the very same time. “Zim, the fact that you're worried about this so much is the only answer you need.”

Zim raised one antenna up and furrowed his brow. “What do you mean?”

“Do you really think I don't worry about my past, too?” He wasn't trying to make it about himself, but comparing their problems was often the best way to validate them. “Every time I make an ass of myself, or I'm selfish, or when I just  _ look _ too much like my father - I'm constantly thinking: Will I ever grow out of my childhood? Will I ever be normal, my own  _ human?” _

“But you already have grown!”

“And you have, too, but that isn't my point.” He thinks about all the times they've screwed up. He thinks about the times they've lashed out, at each other or someone else. He thinks about all the times it was his own sister. He thinks about all the times they were forgiven. “Zim, worrying about these things is possibly the most human thing you  _ can _ do.”

Big, bright, beautiful magenta eyes turn to him with a glint of hope, and Dib remembers how this conversation all started. “You aren't human, at least not physically, and there may be plenty of differences between how our brains work. But I didn't choose a human to be my nemesis. I didn't choose a human to be my best friend, or my partner. I chose the ridiculous little space bug that crashed into my neighborhood, and that hasn't changed.”

There was silence on Zim's side for a moment, long enough for Dib to start to worry, before arms were suddenly wrapped tightly around his stomach, and a head buried into his chest.  _ “Thank you, _ my Dib.”

Dib gave out a happy exhale of breath, surprised that he managed to comfort him properly, and returned the embrace. “Of course.”

And in each other's arms, that's when they both realized it.

“Look how far we've come. We- we’ve made it, haven't we?”

Zim laughed, exasperated. They were both choking up. “We've  _ finally  _ made it.”

Neither had to explain what they made it to that night; it was their story, after all. It was the end of another book, the conclusion to an arc of pain and growth. That didn't mean they were done growing or hurting, far from it; but what came next would be written in a new installment of their series, where they could finally, truly move on.

In a way, neither of them are completely human, not in the traditional, biological sense. But they are  _ people, _ and a rose by any other name is just as sweet.

**Author's Note:**

> Tumblr: @nonbinary-dib
> 
> Comment if you enjoyed! This one wasn't beta read, so let me know if there are any grammar errors.


End file.
